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Kazarr Khonn
Kazarr Khonn,Lord of the Icelandric Wilderness. Secret Origins of Mavericlion Productions. Introduction The concept was inspired by several things.Edgar Rice Burroughs Tarzan of the Apes.And who hasn't been inspired by that, from the likes of Conan of Cimmeria to Ka-Zar -Tarzan clones are as numerous as Clonans.(Conan Clones.).I was always a fan of Tarzan and Conan.Ka-Zar was ok,but Stan Lee and Jack Kirby ruined the Lord of the Hidden Jungle,by making him the me Tarzan Johnny Wisemeuller I am an idiot speak.I believe Johnny Wisemeuller in butcher's apron just couldn't remember lines and that s why all that crap.I does the same for Jungle Jim.Boy.Him called Boy.No,dumb ass him called Korak.You called moron,George George of the Jungle.Watch out for that tree. Later on,Marvel tried upgrade Ka-Zar,but because Marvel Comics are no way as good a storyteller s like Edgar Rice Burroughs or Robert E.Howard muddle up the storylines with typical assclown writing.It was was good they paired up Ka Zar with Shannah of the Jungle,but like I said,assclown writing just ruins the narrative.Most of these just understand superhero thinking and not pull adventure thinking.And that ruins the narrative with with far much assclown superhero fights and infantile Marvel Soap Opera.What they call professional writing,I call shit. I am not sure I heard of and certainly never read Edgar Rice Burroughs Back to the Stone Age,but the idea of somebody -a modern man going native,is a good idea,so I throw that one in,too. Originally,back when I was going my original 1970's Toreus 2240 A.D./Toreus the Slayer Cycle,I had the idea of a modern man waking up Dillon Hunt/Genesis II style.The idea came,looking the Meal Adam's two spread of King Kull,Brule,Solomon Kane,Bran Mac Morn and Red Sonja in Kill and the Barbarians issue one.I drew this line haired blonde guy,in a torn up jump suite,wearing a sabertooth necklace,holding a spear and stepping out of a fantastic futuristic time tunnel way..This guy was called Carson Thoran.He was stepping into Captain Toreus 's Savage World.Eventually,I am sure,if I developed it further than a drawing,he would have met with Toreus and gang.The Years on,I revisited the Carson Thoran concept,I planned him to be a friend to Lord Thrull Khonn and that still might happen.Later still,I figured give not only a Saber tooth Cat like Zabu,but a Mammoth Elephant and maybe a monkey,I seen in the movie Ice Age.I know,it's a Sloth,but let's go monkey like Nkhema of Tarzan or Chee Chee of Tor.I like The idea of a blind Tarzan type,riding a Wholly Mammoth,with a monkey and two Saber tooth Tigers. I transformed Carson Thoran into Kazarr Khonn.I was not sure to give in a Genesis Two Style sub shuttle.Much as I admire the like of Edgar Rice Burroughs and Robert E Howard,not everything that both gentlemen wrote was perfect.Both had great stories and a few well descriptors crappy ones.To sound Conan or Tarzan,cooled men are fools.And goes for Howard Purist,that Dark Horse was trying to kaytor to.Whatever Two Gun Bob meant to do with various creation,went out with the bullet he put his skull.Maybe he would went on write more Conan or Kill stories,rewrite some it maybe.Certainly,much of the King Kull needed to rewritten and some of the Conan stuff.Certainly,Queen of the Black Coast needed be expanded further.As it stand,sorry to say is the Beginning of a novel and the end of a novel,with much skipped over.No way,could call a good as it stands.If Farnsworth Wright accepted that,then he was a fool.I prefer the handling by Marvel Comics under Roy Thomas.We got to see Belit and Conan as a couple.Belit under REH was a chaotic unfinished mess.Novelyne Price was right.She was crazy. Edgar Rice Burroughs spent to much writing by formula.Sure I like the hero goes to weird place,meets a hot chick and good,heroic buddy,but often that plot point was shoved into areas where it wasn't needed.Certainly,not it was handled.ERB was a good,fast paced storyteller,but sometimes thing got left,that should have explored.And sure,like Howard,Burroughs was far better than the stupid hacks,that could not write their way out of a paper bag,but neither was perfect.And both wrote stories that favored the era's in they wrote.Purest will see this as sacrilegious,but I am only speaking truth.Things today are,we hope different. Kazarr Khonn is attempt to write like Edgar Rice Burroughs and Robert E Howard,and hopefully not trip into their mistakes. Sincerely yours. Doc Thompson. Onward,Upward(not upyours) Maveric. Prologue My story begins on the day,I died. Well,for practical purposes,it was The day I died. The life I led was one of utter boredom.It lived among the common place citizens of the Crescent Lands of Pangea.Someone,decided to place a New Genesis Bunker among the Icelandric Wilderness.We sat just between The Land of Thule or Ultima Thule and The Land of Vladerheim.Both kingdoms are attic worlds of splender and neither realm sat well with each other.Mount Thoom Sat closer to Thule than Vladerheim. Many of Pangea now saw the New Genesis Bunkers as sanctuary shelters as the Imperial Atlantean Space Naval Forces pitch themselves against the Imperial Tauron Space Naval Forces in the skies above The Great Sphere,known as Terra-Prime.The Atlanteans felt someone,perhaps The Sidairean World Builders needed to give the many Terran Worlds shattered across time and space,as sanctuary Dyson Sphere world like they had. The Sidairean Preservers,wanted to save every world from the destruction of the Atlantean/Tauron Temporal Cold War.This war waged across countless worlds of The Multiverse,since sometime in both civilizations origins.And currently,The Great Sphere of Terra -Prime was object for the past hundred years,the great object of strategic importance.The Taurons wanted for their own opjectives-power,fuel ,occupation for their great star fleets and the Atlanteans wanted prevent that.And both knowing and unknowingly were destroying the Stellar jewel among this Pocket Reality,that meant to possess or save.Yes,Humans,even those of a superior race,who had their misfortunes of the infinite cosmos,found themselves making Ron's old mistakes. I was a common cog of Mount Thoom's Engineering maintaince staff.They have an important sounding title.Chief Deputy Engineer,Third Class under a bunch of 347 Other personnel with a similar title.Lt.Kazarr Khonn,Chief Deputy Engineer,Third Class seems like now the memories of another man,in another world.And for that all purposes,it was.I can now barely remember much that world.Perhaps,it being up suspended animation or perhaps,I am just getting old.Who knows ? The reason I was here,was simple.Chief Engineer Derrick Bronsby was told by Mount Thooms Medical Staff,that the TyKhonean Sarcophagus,that they installed was compatible with the Atlantean/Sidairean Technologies,that much ran with New Genesis Bunker.And I was The guy closest to the Outside,the Tauron Forces were closing down upon Mount Thoom. "Warning !Alert !" The Magnus 5000 SO called upon the load speaker of the New Genesis Bunker s Com System. " Lt.Kazarr Khonn Chief Deputy Engineer,Third Class The plot The New Genesis Bunker,where Kazarr Khonn some in was located among the Northern Icelandric Region of The Crescent Lands of Pangea.Kazarr Khonn is a man from The Golden Age of Pangea.He was frozen,just as The Tauron Weapons of Mass Destruction attacked The Icelandric Wilderness. Kazarr Khonn trapped placed himself into the Medical Sickbays OsiRhon Sarcophagus,hoping to be rescued weeks of month later.Forgotten,the rescue comes a few centuries onward.Thuleans,searching for treasure,find Kazarr Khonn in suspended animation. . Now we see the madness from the point of Kazarr Khonn being trapped with a New Genesis Bunker,during the Atlantean/Tauron War for Hades-Prime.Kazarr Khonn,possibly of Khalladon/Delkhon ancestry,desired put himself in suspended animation to await resclue.He befreinds the Thulean Tribes foremost hunter Nhared Tursi. the massive Mammoth stampede that breaks apart the expedition from Ironbound City,separates Kazarr Khonn and Nhared Tursi from the other Ultima Thuleans. Kazarr Khonn andNhared Tursi , who escapes the crush into the forest beast. Soon, in trackless and strange,New world created by the destruction of The Old Crescent Lands of Pangea ,that was known,Kazarr Khonn with no sense of where to search for his companions or the camp. The Skeloshians are an excellent villain race, similar in concept to the Coripies from Tanar of The Crescent Lands of Pangea but without a sympathetic character — not that they need one. The Skeloshians A race that resembles what dinosaurs might have become if they evolved into a sentient tool-using species is conceptually far ahead of its time. Reading about the Skeloshians swarming down to the riverbanks on the backs of giant therapsids (called Gorobors, but identified scientifically as Paresisauri) is so uniquely The Crescent Lands of Pangean .The Skeloshians would make great opponents of the Ultima Thuleans . Almost immediately, a flying marsupial reptile called a Trodon seizes Kazarr Khonn and places him in its nest — the first of a series of captivities that fill up the rest of the book. Kazarr Khonn manages an escape along with another captive, Dangar of the land of Sari. Kazarr Khonn isn’t aware that Sari is where Jason Gridley is located, and he’s soon distracted from reaching this destination when he encounters the beautiful Shauna King during his next scheduled imprisonment, this time with the cannibal Bastians. Kazarr Khonn channels his energies and his increasing reversion to the mental psychology of the Stone Age either to protect Shauna King from the dangers of the Icelandric Wilderness or to find his way to her homeland of Lotarr City,where her father Shaghus King is the chieftain of that city. Shauna King wishes avoid her homeland.She was becoming of an age to marry someone from the city,but not want to marry the stupid fools,she knew.One was certainly an inept fool,who wanted to use to get in a better position to her father.She pursued an angry suitor named LoGhaz Krung the Imbecilic One is waiting for her.LoGhaz Krung was a big,ugly fool,only wishing power for himself and one replace her father.Shauna King despires him and fled into the Icelandric Wilderness. Kazarr Khonn,Great White and two Sabercats Jonesie and Indie are attacked by a flock of Pteranodons.The two Sabercats get scooped with Kazarr Khonn. Kazarr Khonn battles a Pteranodon in mid-air.The Pteranodon are strange creatures under control of the Trongaroth ,secretly hidden on Pangea. During Kazarr Khonn ’s wanderings, he ends up imprisoned by the Gorbuses.He is place an are an with a mighty Woolly mammoths and two Saber cats. Kazarr Khonn and company the mammoth riding Thuleans, who are then the Ultima Thuleans Warrior class. He also picks up a helpful travel companions, a massive mammoth named Old Tantarus and two grateful Saber tooth Tigers. Old Tantarus is at the center of the adventurers two exceptional moments. Kazarr Khonn is set upon a Thulean Arena,with Ironbound City. When Kazarr Khonn first encounters the enormous creature, Old Tantarus is in a trap with bamboo spears stuck into his side. Kazarr Khonn draws the spears out in a scene that’s more gentle and loving than anything the hero experiences with Shauna King. Old Tantarus When Old Tantarus returns, it’s to rescue Kazarr Khonn from the crush of Ultima Thuleans (sabertooths) and other mammoths in the “narrow canyon,” which is the mammoth-men’s equivalent of an arena fight. Kazarr Khonn turns into a rag doll in this sequence: Old Tantarus scoops him up with his trunk, drops him on his back, then turns about and batters through the Ultima Thuleans to freedom. Old Tantarus even hurls a tarag into the crowd where it goes on a violent tear. As far as thrill sequences go, this ranks with the best The Crescent Lands of Pangea has to offer. Kazarr Khonn and companions find themselves at Ironbound City.The city is massive series of stone and wooden habitats strung together by striped bound by Iron.The Thuleans call it Ironbound City because much of the metropolitan dwellings are bound by Iron stripes ,plates and bars.The city has strange black look about it.Ironbound City has stood for centuries here,being torn apart and repaired in the Great War.Ultima Thuleans rarely improvement anything,feeling traditions of a thousand generation spoke nothing could improved as it was originally perfected.Great walkways stretched across each street.Thuleans went up and down outside buildings in Ironbound cages.Some swing from one building to another upon high,strong cables.Iron Letter were scattered all over the many scaffold structures found this scaffold city buildings.Thuleans walking up and down each ramp structure.They Thules felt no need to remove the scaffolds once the work was done and used as High walkways to move about the city ways.Dwellers upon the city streets,walked under protected by these scaffolds roof coverings.Water dropped from ice cakes sideways about the scaffold structures.Clean water booths could be found anywhere for an Ultima Thulean to drink clean water out of paper cups.Water was collected from high water towers above each building. Heated vents smoked from street vent smoke stacks across every street.Those were underground heating factories,found under the city streets,that provided warm for the many dwelling,merchants,cargo holds,city officials offices of Ironbound City.Below,obviously was a sewer system,evindent by small vents in the streets,for rain water to pour into.That water was collected and processed into fresh,clean wfposeposes of the bathroom uses. When the Ultima Thuleans tries to capture Kazarr Khonn , he goes on a casual killing spree that’s not out of character but utterly hilarious and the right type of bonkers the adventure needs as the final stretch turns tedious. When a fight erupts between two competitors for the chieftainship, Krussus King and Tantor King , When the Ganak chief claims Kazarr Khonn cannot kill people with metal arrows in Great fire stick (he derides them as “little sticks”), Kazarr Khonn demonstrates their lethality by nonchalantly shooting an arrow into the chief’s heart and killing him. Kazarr Khonn proclaims “Krussus King is chief!” and shoots Tantor King dead. Kazarr Khonn easily bests numerous burly challengers, escapes from a trap in a canyon with a rush of mammoths and sabertooths, and eventually wins the love of Shauna King before David Innes’s expedition at last locates him. Old Tantarus, the Great Mammoth .Kazarr Khonn The Killer is the best supporting character and this adventures biggest win. Animal companions are common in Pangea Tales , and the The Crescent Lands of Pangea stories already had a great one in Raja the hyaenodon. But Old Tantarus is something special: he’s almost Kazarr Khonn ’s superior in their relationship, playing around with the man and exhibiting a sense of humor as he teases him and dangles him upside down from his trunk. Old Tantarus seems to have human intelligence.Old Tantarus always arrives right when he’s needed, not just for Kazarr Khonn , but for readers, since the mammoth ally helps create a sense of a throughline in an episodic story. Kazarr Khonn carries a knife and sword.A sharp green glowing spear and blaster rifle from own era.He wears the jump suite from own era,that has a Chameleon Moremo'oremost hunter Nhared Tursi,the beautiful Shauna King ,with Carson Sarkhon flew across the azure skies of the Northern Icelandric , to Barenheim, the Capital city of the Vhanaheim kingdom.The evil Warlord Tamarr Torr thought himself safe until scouts reported an Squadrons of Air Ships-air travellers from the Thulean Province,teamed up Vhanaheim rebels.Warlord Tamarr Torr saw that their multitude blotted at the sun of Terra-Prime.He drew fear.The evil Time Wizard Losha Lokus feared Carson Sarkhon was aboard that lead ship. LoGhaz Krung has joined up Warlord Tamarr Torr hoping to Holding back LoGhaz, ostensibly von Horst’s rival for La-ja, for the big finale might have worked if LoGhaz ended up as anything worth the wait. La-ja uses him as a tease to needle von Horst, and readers know LoGhaz is going to show up eventually. But when he does make his entrance, LoGhaz isn’t anything special, just another of the bruisers Kazarr Khonn has beaten without much effort throughout the book. LoGhaz Krung being a big mouth moron behind shout,that he will kill him.Warlord Tamarr Torr gives the Vladerheim his lance and order Kazarr Khonns death.LoGhaz Krung he will return with with Kazarr Khonn's head of He will brings LoGhaz Krung 's head his master.Tamarr says do so or never return. LoGhaz were mounted on his own pet mammoth, and Kazarr Khonn and Old White charged them for a tusk-to-tusk, spear-to-spear duel … The two hours each on the battlefield,with electromagnetic plasma lances.Kazarr Khonn is nearly knocked old White by LoGhaz's Black Mammoth-Diablo.Kazarr Khonn manage s mainly his sandle,but just barely.He now determined to win And all cost.The two stop And turn.LoGhaz And Kazarr Khonn charge again,but this the evil Vhaderheim warrior is knocked backwards,breaking his saddle harness.His lance is deflected by von Horst’s plasma shield and knocked out of LoGhaz's hand,flung towards the ground. The two charge again,but this time it Old White and Diablo who go at it.Old buttheads Diablo.The black mammoth straggers and tumbles backwards.LoGhaz trying whip Kazarr Khonn 's lance out his hands.Kazarr Khonn managed to use his plasma lance And wrap the whip around itself.Kazarr Khonn pillsLoGhaz off his unsteady mount And into the dirt.Kazarr Khonn dismounted And draws his sword.He has enough of this bike being And plans to kill him. And Kazarr Khonn then beats beats LoGhaz's own sword arm savagely.evil Vhaderheim begins to become fearful.His swordsman ship not as well as Kazarr Khonn . LoGhaz please mercy and Kazarr Khonn says why ?So can trick somewhere up the road ?Kazarr Khonn then thrusts his sword into LoGhaz Krung Chest.von Horstthen savage my sever LoGhaz's head from his shoulders.He then placed the body and severed head upon the Black Mammoth,sending towards Warlord Tamarr Torr own forces.He places a note upon the beasts saddle. "I killed your champion.Next it will be you.! Count on it ." Tamarr Torr receiving the body and the note,becomes angery.He wants Kazarr Khonn dead,but how he doesn't know.Things are going badly. without much effort LoGhaz well, anything more exuberant than what we ended up with would’ve been acceptable. Glossary Ganak THE roar of battle had died away; the shout of victory mingled with the cries of the dying. Like gay-hued leaves after an autumn storm, the fallen littered the plain; the sinking sun shimmered on burnished helmets, gilt-worked mail, silver breastplates, broken swords and the heavy regal folds of silken standards, overthrown in pools of curdling crimson. In silent heaps lay war- horses and their steel-clad riders, flowing manes and blowing plumes stained alike in the red tide. About them and among them, like the drift of a storm, were strewn slashed and trampled bodies in steel caps and leather jerkins – archers and pikemen. The oliphants sounded a fanfare of triumph all over the plain, and the hoofs of the victors crunched in the breasts of the vanquished as all the straggling, shining lines converged inward like the spokes of a glittering wheel, to the spot where the last survivor still waged unequal strife. That day Conan, king of Aquilonia, had seen the pick of his chivalry cut to pieces, smashed and hammered to bits, and swept into eternity. With five thousand knights he had crossed the south-eastern border of Aquilonia and ridden into the grassy meadowlands of Ophir, to find his former ally, King Amalrus of Ophir, drawn up against him with the hosts of Strabonus, king of Koth. Too late he had seen the trap. All that a man might do he had done with his five thousand cavalrymen against the thirty thousand knights, archers and spearmen of the conspirators. Without bowmen or infantry, he had hurled his armored horsemen against the oncoming host, had seen the knights of his foes in their shining mail go down before his lances, had torn the opposing center to bits, driving the riven ranks headlong before him, only to find himself caught in a vise as the untouched wings closed in. Strabonus' Shemitish bowmen had wrought havoc among his knights, feathering them with shafts that found every crevice in their armor, shooting down the horses, the Kothian pikemen rushing in to spear the fallen riders. The mailed lancers of the routed center had re-formed, reinforced by the riders from the wings, and had charged again and again, sweeping the field by sheer weight of numbers. The Aquilonians had not fled; they had died on the field, and of the five thousand knights who had followed Conan southward, not one left the field alive. And now the king himself stood at bay among the slashed bodies of his house-troops, his back against a heap of dead horses and men. Ophirean knights in gilded mail leaped their horses over mounds of corpses to slash at the solitary figure; squat Shemites with blue-black beards, and dark- faced Kothian knights ringed him on foot. The clangor of steel rose deafeningly; the black-mailed figure of the western king loomed among his swarming foes, dealing blows like a butcher wielding a great cleaver. Riderless horses raced down the field; about his iron-clad feet grew a ring of mangled corpses. His attackers drew back from his desperate savagery, panting and livid. Now through the yelling, cursing lines rode the lords of the conquerors—Strabonus, with his broad dark face and crafty eyes; Amalrus, slender, fastidious, treacherous, dangerous as a cobra; and the lean vulture Tsotha-lanti, clad only in silken robes, his great black eyes glittering from a face that was like that of a bird of prey. Of this Kothian wizard dark tales were told; tousle-headed women in northern and western villages frightened children with his name, and rebellious slaves were brought to abased submission quicker than by the lash, with threat of being sold to him. Men said that he had a whole library of dark works bound in skin flayed from living human victims, and that in nameless pits below the hill whereon his palace sat, he trafficked with the powers of darkness, trading screaming girl slaves for unholy secrets. He was the real ruler of Koth. Now he grinned bleakly as the kings reined back a safe distance from the grim iron-clad figure looming among the dead. Before the savage blue eyes blazing murderously from beneath the crested, dented helmet, the boldest shrank. Conan's dark scarred face was darker yet with passion; his black armor was hacked to tatters and splashed with blood; his great sword red to the cross- piece. In this stress all the veneer of civilization had faded; it was a barbarian who faced his conquerors. Conan was a Cimmerian by birth, one of those fierce moody hillmen who dwelt in their gloomy, cloudy land in the north. His saga, which had led him to the throne of Aquilonia, was the basis of a whole cycle of hero-tales. So now the kings kept their distance, and Strabonus called on his Shemitish archers to loose their arrows at his foe from a distance; his captains had fallen like ripe grain before the Cimmerian's broadsword, and Strabonus, penurious of his knights as of his coins, was frothing with fury. But Tsotha shook his head. "Take him alive." "Easy to say!" snarled Strabonus, uneasy lest in some way the black- mailed giant might hew a path to them through the spears. "Who can take a man- eating tiger alive? By Ishtar, his heel is on the necks of my finest swordsmen! It took seven years and stacks of gold to train each, and there they lie, so much kite's meat. Arrows, I say!" "Again, nay!" snapped Tsotha, swinging down from his horse. He laughed coldly. "Have you not learned by this time that my brain is mightier than any sword?" He passed through the lines of the pikemen, and the giants in their steel caps and mail brigandines shrank back fearfully, lest they so much as touch the skirts of his robe. Nor were the plumed knights slower in making room for him. He stepped over the corpses and came face to face with the grim king. The hosts watched in tense silence, holding their breath. The black-armored figure loomed in terrible menace over the lean, silk-robed shape, the notched, dripping sword hovering on high. "I offer you life, Conan," said Tsotha, a cruel mirth bubbling at the back of his voice. "I give you death, wizard," snarled the king, and backed by iron muscles and ferocious hate the great sword swung in a stroke meant to shear Tsotha's lean torso in half. But even as the hosts cried out, the wizard stepped in, too quick for the eye to follow, and apparently merely laid an open hand on Conan's left forearm, from the ridged muscles of which the mail had been hacked away. The whistling blade veered from its arc and the mailed giant crashed heavily to earth, to lie motionless. Tsotha laughed silently. "Take him up and fear not; the lion's fangs are drawn." The kings reined in and gazed in awe at the fallen lion. Conan lay stiffly, like a dead man, but his eyes glared up at them, wide open, and blazing with helpless fury. "What have you done to him?" asked Amalrus uneasily. Tsotha displayed a broad ring of curious design on his finger. He pressed his fingers together and on the inner side of the ring a tiny steel fang darted out like a snake's tongue. "It is steeped in the juice of the purple lotus which grows in the ghost- haunted swamps of southern Stygia," said the magician. "Its touch produces temporary paralysis. Put him in chains and lay him in a chariot. The sun sets and it is time we were on the road for Khorshemish." Strabonus turned to his general Arbanus. "We return to Khorshemish with the wounded. Only a troop of the royal cavalry will accompany us. Your orders are to march at dawn to the Aquilonian border, and invest the city of Shamar. The Ophireans will supply you with food along the march. We will rejoin you as soon as possible, with reinforcements." So the host, with its steel-sheathed knights, its pikemen and archers and camp-servants, went into camp in the meadowlands near the battlefield. And through the starry night the two kings and the sorcerer who was greater than any king rode to the capital of Strabonus, in the midst of the glittering palace troop, and accompanied by a long line of chariots, loaded with the wounded. In one of these chariots lay Conan, king of Aquilonia, weighted with chains, the tang of defeat in his mouth, the blind fury of a trapped tiger in his soul. The poison which had frozen his mighty limbs to helplessness had not paralyzed his brain. As the chariot in which he lay rumbled over the meadowlands, his mind revolved maddeningly about his defeat. Amalrus had sent an emissary imploring aid against Strabonus, who, he said, was ravaging his western domain, which lay like a tapering wedge between the border of Aquilonia and the vast southern kingdom of Koth. He asked only a thousand horsemen and the presence of Conan, to hearten his demoralized subjects. Conan now mentally blasphemed. In his generosity he had come with five times the number the treacherous monarch had asked. In good faith he had ridden into Ophir, and had been confronted by the supposed rivals allied against him. It spoke significantly of his prowess that they had brought up a whole host to trap him and his five thousand. A red cloud veiled his vision; his veins swelled with fury and in his temples a pulse throbbed maddeningly. In all his life he had never known greater and more helpless wrath. In swift-moving scenes the pageant of his life passed fleetingly before his mental eye—a panorama wherein moved shadowy figures which were himself, in many guises and conditions—a skin-clad barbarian; a mercenary swordsman in horned helmet and scale-mail corselet; a corsair in a dragon-prowed galley that trailed a crimson wake of blood and pillage along southern coasts; a captain of hosts in burnished steel, on a rearing black charger; a king on a golden throne with the lion banner flowing above, and throngs of gay-hued courtiers and ladies on their knees. But always the jouncing and rumbling of the chariot brought his thoughts back to revolve with maddening monotony about the treachery of Amalrus and the sorcery of Tsotha. The veins nearly burst in his temples and cries of the wounded in the chariots filled him with ferocious satisfaction. Before midnight they crossed the Ophirean border and at dawn the spires of Khorshemish stood up gleaming and rose-tinted on the south-eastern horizon, the slim towers overawed by the grim scarlet citadel that at a distance was like a splash of bright blood in the sky. That was the castle of Tsotha. Only one narrow street, paved with marble and guarded by heavy iron gates, led up to it, where it crowned the hill dominating the city. The sides of that hill were too sheer to be climbed elsewhere. From the walls of the citadel one could look down on the broad white streets of the city, on minaretted mosques, shops, temples, mansions, and markets. One could look down, too, on the palaces of the king, set in broad gardens, high-walled, luxurious riots of fruit trees and blossoms, through which artificial streams murmured, and silvery fountains rippled incessantly. Over all brooded the citadel, like a condor stooping above its prey, intent on its own dark meditations. The mighty gates between the huge towers of the outer wall clanged open, and the king rode into his capital between lines of glittering spearmen, while fifty trumpets pealed salute. But no throngs swarmed the white-paved streets to fling roses before the conqueror's hoofs. Strabonus had raced ahead of news of the battle, and the people, just rousing to the occupations of the day, gaped to see their king returning with a small retinue, and were in doubt as to whether it portended victory or defeat. Conan, life sluggishly moving in his veins again, craned his neck from the chariot floor to view the wonders of this city which men called the Queen of the South. He had thought to ride some day through these golden-chased gates at the head of his steel-clad squadrons, with the great lion banner flowing over his helmeted head. Instead he entered in chains, stripped of his armor, and thrown like a captive slave on the bronze floor of his conqueror's chariot. A wayward devilish mirth of mockery rose above his fury, but to the nervous soldiers who drove the chariot his laughter sounded like the muttering of a rousing lion. CHAPTER 2 Open main menu Wikipedia Search Wikipedia 5 EditWatch this pageRead in another language Ka-Zar (comics) This article is about the comic versions by Marvel. For the pulp series, see Ka-Zar (magazine). Ka-Zar (/ˈkeɪsɑːr/ KAY-sar)1 is the name of two jungle-dwelling fictional comic book characters published in the United States. The first Ka-Zar was named David Rand, and debuted in 1936, first appearing in pulp magazines of the 1930s. In 1939 he was adapted for his second iteration, a comic book character for Timely Comics, the 1930s and 1940s predecessor of Marvel Comics. The second and more prominent Ka-Zar was named Kevin Plunder, and first appeared in 1965. He is a heroic character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Ka-Zar Mcp5.jpg Kevin Plunder, the second Ka-Zar, battles dinosaurs in the Savage Land alongside his sabretooth tiger, Zabu. Art by Greg Land. Publication information Publisher Marvel Comics First appearance The X-Men #10 (March 1965) Created by Stan Lee (writer) Jack Kirby (artist) In-story information Alter ego Kevin Plunder Species Human Partnerships Zabu Shanna the She-Devil Notable aliases Lord of the Hidden Jungle Abilities Great hunter, trapper, fisherman, forager, and survivalist Enhanced physical attributes Carries various weapons Ability to communicate with some animals Contents Publication history Edit Cover to the X-Men #10 the first appearance of Ka-Zar and his sabretooth tiger, Zabu. Art by Jack Kirby. The second Ka-Zar started as a similar character, but reminiscent of both Tarzan and of writer-artist Joe Kubert's 1950s caveman character, Tor. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in The X-Men #10 (March 1965), he lives in the dinosaur-populated Savage Land, which was hidden beneath Antarctica by extraterrestrials. The character was based on his pulp magazine namesake only to the extent that he used the same name and rough "jungle lord" concept, and Lee has admitted that he had never even read any of the original Ka-Zar stories.2 Originally written as a primitive and belligerent savage who spoke in broken English, Ka-Zar later became more articulate and civilized, although he retained a certain degree of distrust toward civilization and was generally wary of outside visitors to the Savage Land. Kevin Plunder refers to himself as the "Lord of the Savage Land," a phrase others have adopted, but this is not a formal title. Ka-Zar's first solo story was published in Marvel Super-Heroes #19 (1969), and the character had features in the black-and-white magazine Savage Tales and the color title Astonishing Tales. He has had five self-titled series, the first published in 1970–1971 (three issues, mostly reprints), the second, which continued the storyline from Astonishing Tales, in 1974-1977 (20 issues, subtitled Lord of the Hidden Jungle) by Mike Friedrich, Gerry Conway, and Doug Moench, the third in 1981-1984, Ka-Zar the Savage, (34 issues) by Bruce Jones and Mike Carlin, the fourth in 1997-1998 (20 issues) written by Mark Waid3 and the fifth in 2011 (5 issue miniseries) written by Paul Jenkins. Fictional character biography Edit Ka-Zar is Kevin Reginald, Lord Plunder, born in Castle Plunder, Kentish Town, London, England. He is the eldest son of Lord Robert Plunder, the English nobleman who discovered the Savage Land. After his mother had died and his father was killed by the barbaric Man-Ape natives of the Savage Land, Plunder was found and raised by the sabertooth tiger Zabu, who possesses near-human intelligence thanks to a mutation caused by radioactive mists. "Ka-Zar" means "Son of the Tiger" in the language of the Man-Apes. Ka-Zar and Zabu are constant partners. Ka-Zar became an expert hunter, trapper, and fisherman, living off the wild land. In the Savage Land, some territories are populated by several human or humanoid tribes, and while most of them are on friendly terms with Ka-Zar, some of them consider him an outlander and an enemy. He acts more like an unofficial general protector, preventing outside commercial exploitation, such as poaching and mining, as well as enforcing peace between tribes and serving as goodwill ambassador to friendly visitors. The original X-Men discovered the Savage Land, and Ka-Zar encountered them, battling Maa-Gor for the first time.4 He then encountered Daredevil for the first time, and battled his brother Parnival, who had become the supervillain called the Plunderer.5 He first battled Magneto's Savage Land Mutates alongside the X-Men.6 He then encountered the Hulk for the first time, and battled Umbu the Unliving.7 He was once 'tricked' into confronting Spider-Man after J. Jonah Jameson convinced him that Spider-Man was a menace when the wall-crawler's memory was erased and he was tricked into working with Doctor Octopus. Spider-Man's memory was restored during the fight, with Ka-Zar subsequently apologizing for the mistake and proclaiming Spider-Man as the most valiant opponent he had ever fought.8 Ka-Zar then battled Kraven the Hunter for the first time.9 Shortly after this encounter, Ka-Zar encounters Zaladane and Garokk for the first time.10 After the Savage Land became known to outsiders after the visit by the X-Men, many people began traveling to the territory. Ka-Zar has also become romantically involved with female visitors, the first being S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Barbara Morse (who later became the Avenger named Mockingbird).11 He first battled A.I.M., and met the Man-Thing.12 He then met Spider-Man once again, and battled the extraterrestrial Gog.13 He next met the adventurer Shanna O'Hara,.14 He battled Klaw, and visited other dimensions.15 He and his allies faded mysteriously from that other dimension,16 then teamed with the X-Men to battle Zaladane and a reborn Garokk.17 Ka-Zar, during a search for the lost Zabu, later discovered Pangaea, an ancient refuge created by the Atlanteans.18 Ka-Zar and Shanna began to gradually fall in love.19 He then battles Belasco for the first time.20 After a meeting with A.I.M. spies disguised as scientists, Ka-Zar is shot in the head, but survives. He is flown to New York City, but escapes the plane at Kennedy Airport.21 With no memory and no ability to speak, he wanders New York, saving lives and fighting crime. His memory returns and he encounters Kraven The Hunter again, who has been released from prison by an A.I.M. agent to capture him.22 Saved by Shanna and Spider-Man, he is brought to the hospital where A.I.M. fakes his death in order to use him in a scheme.23 Escaping with Spider-Man's aid, he and Shanna return to the Savage Land.24 He later marries Shanna, who has taken the name Shanna the She-Devil.25 During the ceremony, a war (incited by the machinations of Belasco) breaks out in Pangea, which ends when Ka-Zar and Shanna are banished.26 His brother Parnival arrived in the Savage Land, searching for anti-metal Vibranium, and was apparently killed during his scheme (though much later turned up alive).27 During this scheme, a Nuwali transport device is uncovered, and Ka-Zar, Shanna, and Zabu are transported to the Nuwali planet. The Nuwali use human adrenalin to poison their rivals, and also reveal to Shanna that she is pregnant.28 Ka-Zar has teamed up with several of Marvel's heroes. The X-Men are recurrent visitors to the Savage Land and Ka-Zar has been a frequent ally, helping the mutant team defeat both inside and outside menaces such as Sauron and Magneto. He has met Spider-Man on several occasions, one of which involved stopping Stegron the Dinosaur Man from invading New York City with Savage Land dinosaurs. Ka-Zar has also assisted the Avengers in their attempt to repel the space conqueror Terminus, but while they rescued many natives, they were unable to prevent the destruction of the Savage Land. Ka-Zar was rescued by the Avengers, but left the Savage Land for the civilized world.29 Together, he and Shanna had a son named Matthew. The territory was later reconstructed by the High Evolutionary using Garokk, and Ka-Zar and Shanna returned with their newborn and resumed their previous roles.30 Ka-Zar and Shanna separated for a time,31 but got back together before long. Ka-Zar fought and defeated Thanos in one of his many attempts to end life, and later sought the help of investigator Jessica Jones for assistance locating Zabu.32 Shanna and Ka-Zar find Skrulls mining the rare metal vibranium in the Savage Land. Soon afterward as part of the "Secret Invasion" storyline, a Skrull ship crashes in the Savage Land releasing earlier versions of modern superheroes (who claim to be the originals replaced by Skrulls for some time), and who have escaped. Shanna and Ka-Zar soon learn, however, that these are simply more Skrulls in disguise. Spider-Man soon encounters Ka-Zar, Shanna, Zabu, and some of the natives accusing them of being Skrulls. Just then, the Captain America from the ship attacked thinking the same for Spider-Man. Ka-Zar, Shanna, and Zabu help Spider-Man fight the Captain America from the ship until it is hit by a dart that causes it to regress to a Skrull named Pit'o Nilli.33 He then later goes with the rest of the Avengers to New York City to help them fight off the Skrull invasion while Shanna stays behind with Zabu to fight off anymore Skrulls left in the Savage Land.34 Ka-Zar later meets Reptil when he and Tigra have rescued Moon-Boy. After reuniting Moon-Boy with Devil Dinosaur, Ka-Zar tells Reptil that he will help him find his parents.35 Ka-Zar and Shanna later encounter the return of the Ethereals and end up fighting them when it comes to the Ethereals wanting the tribes of the Savage Land to be united with them.36 He later teams with Skaar to protect the Savage Land from outside forces.37 Powers and abilities Edit Kevin Plunder is an athletic man with no superhuman powers. He utilizes a unique style of hand-to-hand combat shaped by years of surviving in the Savage Land. He has developed great skills in hunting, trapping, fishing, foraging, and general survival in the wild. He carries a 12-inch (300 mm) Bowie knife, and occasionally uses a sling, bow and arrow, and other primitive weapons. He can also communicate with some animals. It was revealed in Astonishing Tales #11, scripted by Roy Thomas, that Ka-Zar's and Zabu's physical abilities had been enhanced by passing through some mysterious mist.38 The mists later endowed other characters (Maa-Gor and El Tigre) with superhuman abilities.39 Other versions Edit Age of Ultron Edit In the Age of Ultron story, Ka-Zar was present in the Savage Land when the hero resistance against Ultron was relocated to the Savage Land. Ka-Zar leads them to a refuge area where they can formulate their next plan.40 Earth-8413 Edit A version of Kevin Plunder, named Kavin Plundarr, is Gotowar Konanegg41 a Captain Britain Corps member who featured in Mighty World Of Marvel vol. 2 #13 (1984). Earth X Edit In the Earth X series, Ka-Zar (as well as Shanna) have been mutated by Plague X into humanoid saber-toothed tigers. They play an integral part in Universe X- leading Captain America and the reborn Mar-Vell to the gateway to Limbo, and helping the X-Men and Wakandan refugees escape the cannibalistic hordes of Wendigo.& issue needed What If? Edit He appears in a What If story, where the Savage Land terraforming has taken over New York. He has a son, Matthew, but is appears that Zabu has been killed as his skull is seen on Ka-Zar's head and his pelt, a cape. Both he and Parnival sacrifice themselves to return New York to normal, with Shanna the only survivor of his "family."42 House of M Edit In the House of M reality, Kevin Plunder appears in a short article in The Pulse: House of M Special Edition. The article explains that he has been granted asylum in the US and feature a picture of him alongside his faithful companion Zabu.& issue needed Marvel Zombies Edit It is briefly noted in Marvel Zombies that a zombified Quicksilver managed to spread the virus to the Savage Land, infecting Ka-Zar and Zabu.& issue needed Ultimate Marvel Edit Ka-Zar appears in his Ultimate form on the final page of issue #3 of Ultimate Comics: New Ultimates, along with Ultimate Shanna.43 After the Ultimatum wave, they join the New Ultimates where they help to fight Loki.44 Spider-Geddon Edit During the "Spider-Geddon" storyline, there is a version of Ka-Zar who has traits that are amalgamated with Kraven the Hunter named Ka-Zar the Hunter. He is seen with Wilson Fisk when they are in the Savage Land poaching dinosaurs. It was mentioned by Ka-Zar that his father killed the last of the Man-Apes. He unknowingly sets off one of Savage Spider-Man's traps that nearly crushes Ka-Zar the Hunter who pushes Fisk out of the way.45 In other media Edit Television Edit Ka-Zar appears in the 1981 Spider-Man cartoon "The Hunter and the Hunted," voiced by Arlin Miller.needed He arrives in New York to rescue Zabu from Kraven the Hunter and allies with Spider-Man to do that. Ka-Zar first appeared in the two-part X-Men episodes "Reunion", voiced by Robert Bockstael.needed He encounters Wolverine after he was separated from the X-Men following their ambush by the Savage Land Mutates. Ka-Zar helps Wolverine to rescue them, Magneto, Shanna, and the other tribesmen. In the two-part episode "Savage Land, Savage Heart", Ka-Zar and Shanna help the X-Men combat the threat of Zaladane and Garokk. Ka-Zar appears in The Super Hero Squad Show episode "Stranger From a Savage Land!", voiced by Kevin Sorbo.needed After Zabu was held captive in the Super Hero City Zoo for live study after being captured by a scientist from the Savage Land, Ka-Zar arrives in Super Hero City to rescue Zabu from Doctor Doom and the Lethal Legion with help from the Super Hero Squad.46 Ka-Zar appears in the Ultimate Spider-Man: Web Warriors episode "The Savage Spider-Man", voiced by Steven Blum.needed This version is shown to wear an outfit that is a combination of pants and a loincloth. Ka-Zar uses various hand-made weapons including a spear, bowie knives, and wrist mounted weapons with retractable blades. Ka-Zar first appears where he attacks Spider-Man and Wolverine where he suspects that they were the ones who abducted Zabu. Ka-Zar teams up with Spider-Man and Wolverine to save Zabu from Kraven the Hunter and Taskmaster when Spider-Man comes looking to recruit him to the New Warriors. Spider-Man assists him in rescuing Zabu. Ka-Zar helps Wolverine when Spider-Man is hit with a dart that has a special poison that transforms Spider-Man into the Man-Spider. Using the medicine from a skunk-like creature, Ka-Zar and Wolverine restore Man-Spider back to Spider-Man as they follow Taskmaster and Kraven the Hunter back to Manhattan. Upon arriving in Manhattan, Ka-Zar has difficulty surviving in the city, much as Spider-Man was not used to the Savage Land. After Kraven the Hunter's defeat and Taskmaster's escape, Ka-Zar and Zabu join the New Warriors. In the episode "New Warriors", Ka-Zar gains an upgraded version of his wrist weapons along with a bo staff. Film Edit Marvel Studios announced in 2009 that properties including Doctor Strange, Ka-Zar, Luke Cage, and Power Pack were among those being considered for development.47 Video games Edit Ka-Zar appeared in the video game X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse voiced by John Cygan.needed He and Shanna the She-Devil appear in Magneto's base Avalon during the X-Men and Brotherhood of Mutants' mission in the Savage Land. Ka-Zar makes a cameo appearance in Marvel vs. Capcom 3 in Amaterasu's ending.needed Ka-Zar will be a playable character in the upcoming MMORPG Marvel Heroes.48 Ka-Zar was a playable character in the Facebook game Marvel: Avengers Alliance.needed Reception Edit IGN listed Ka-Zar as the 84th-greatest comic book hero of all time, describing the character as Marvel's equivalent of Tarzan; IGN also compared Ka-Zar as the protector of his land with Namor being protector of the underwater king, with the only differences being that Ka-Zar isn't a total jerk and has a better loin cloth.49 Collected editions Edit Title Material collected Year ISBN Marvel Masterworks: Ka-Zar Volume 1 Marvel Super-Heroes #19, Astonishing Tales #1-16, Savage Tales #1 2013 978-0785159575 Ka-Zar: Guns of the Savage Land Original Graphic Novel 1990 978-0871356413 Mockingbird - Bobbi Morse Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Astonishing Tales #10, #12-13, #15-20, Ka-Zar #3-5, Marvel Team-Up #95, Hawkeye #1-4, material from Astonishing Tales #8, Savage Tales #8 and Marvel Super Action #1 2016 9781302900861 Ka-Zar: Savage Dawn Ka-Zar The Savage #1-5 2017 978-1302905064 Ka-Zar by Mark Waid and Andy Kubert Vol. 1 Ka-Zar (1997) #1-7 & #-1 2011 978-0785143536 Ka-Zar by Mark Waid and Andy Kubert Vol. 2 Ka-Zar (1997) 8-14, Annual '97 2012 978-0785159926 Ka-Zar: The Burning Season Ka-Zar (2011) #1-5 2012 978-0785155645 References Edit X-Men #10 (March 1965), p. 1: "Pronounced: KAY-SAR" Thomas, Roy (August 2011). "Stan Lee's Amazing Marvel Interview!". Alter Ego. TwoMorrows Publishing (104): 19–20. Ka-Zar, 1997, Pipeline, Comic Book Resources, April 7, 2009 X-Men #10 Daredevil #12-14 X-Men #61-63 Incredible Hulk #109-111 Amazing Spider-Man #57 Astonishing Tales #1-2 Astonishing Tales #3-5 Astonishing Tales #8 Astonishing Tales #12-13 Amazing Spider-Man #103-104 Ka-Zar #1 Ka-Zar #14-20 Uncanny X-Men #115 Uncanny X-Men #115-116 Ka-Zar the Savage #1 Ka-Zar the Savage #1-17 Ka-Zar the Savage #12 Ka-Zar the Savage #19 Ka-Zar the Savage #20 Ka-Zar the Savage #21-25 Ka-Zar the Savage #26 Ka-Zar the Savage #29 Ka-Zar the Savage #29-30 Ka-Zar the Savage #31-33 Ka-Zar the Savage #34 Avengers #256-258 Uncanny X-Men Annual #12 Ka-Zar Graphic Novel Alias #24 (September 2003) New Avengers #42 Secret Invasion #7 Avengers: The Initiative Featuring Reptil Ka-Zar Vol. 5 #1-5 Skaar: King of the Savage Land #1-5 Astonishing Tales #11 Ka-Zar (1974 series) #3-5 Age of Ultron #4 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z vol. #2 (May 2008) What If? v2 #112 (September 1998) Ultimates 3 #1-5 Ultimate Comics: New Ultimates #1-5 Vault of Spiders #1. Marvel Comics. Comics Continuum Farci, Devin (2010-04-22). "Exclusive: Marvel's Exciting Small Movie Plans". Chud.com. Archived from the original on 2010-04-24. Retrieved 2009-12-30. "Marvel Heroes MMO Looks An Awful Lot Like Diablo". siliconera. 2012-05-22. Retrieved 2012-07-19. "Ka-Zar is number 84". IGN. Retrieved May 9, 2011. External links Edit Ka-Zar (comics) at the Grand Comics Database Ka-Zar (David Rand) at the Marvel Universe Ka-Zar (David Rand) at the International Catalogue of Superheroes Ka-Zar (David Rand) at the Comic Book DB The Holloway Pages: Pulp Heroes: "Ka-Zar" (Golden Age version) at the Library of Congress Web Archives (archived 2006-11-01) Ka-Zar (Kevin Plunder) at the Marvel Universe Ka-Zar (Kevin Plunder) at the Comic Book DB Ka-Zar (Kevin Plunder) at Spiderfan.org Ka-Zar (Kevin Plunder) at Comic Vine Talk Last edited 1 month ago by an anonymous user Wikipedia Content is available under CC BY-SA 3.0 unless otherwise noted. Terms of UsePrivacyDesktop Ka-Zar (magazine) - Wikipedia This article is about the pulp series. For the comic versions by Marvel, see Ka-Zar (comics). Ka-Zar was a short-lived pulp magazine series of three issues featuring the first iteration of Ka-Zar, a boy raised by lions to become a Tarzan-like jungle lord. Written by Bob Byrd and published by Martin Goodman's Manvis Publishing, the cover and lead story of each issue featured the eponymous hero. Ka-Zar Kazar 1.jpg David Rand, the original Ka-Zar alongside his lion Zar, from the cover of the pulp magazine Ka-Zar v1 #1 October 1936. This character was later integrated into Marvel Comics (then called Timely Comics) via Marvel Comics #1 (October 1939). Publication information Publisher Manvis Publishing/Timely Comics (now Marvel Comics) First appearance Ka-Zar #1 (October 1936) Created by Bob Byrd In-story information Alter ego David Rand Abilities Peak physical strength, speed, agility, and reflexes, Ability to communicate with some animals The origin from Ka-Zar v1 #1 American John Rand’s plane crashes in the Congo jungle with his wife Constance and very young son David on board. After some time lost in the jungle, Constance dies of a jungle malady. Zar, the lion who witnessed everything, keeps an eye on them. Two weeks later, when his son becomes sick, John decides to march out of the jungle, but a storm causes a large tree to fall on him. He recovers physically but mentally lives in a delusional world, believing that the jungle is his home. The boy recovers and grows up and at eight is a husky lad. David Rand continues to grow and meets the jungle animals, keeping his distance from the natives he met. The natives work for a greedy and vicious fat man named Paul de Kraft, who is after emeralds. David, now a strong young man, has been away from camp and returns to see his father dying, their hut in flames and de Kraft present there for everything. Zar the lion saves David from de Kraft. His father dies and David now thinks of himself as Ka-Zar, brother of Zar. The rest of the story is about how he tracks down de Kraft and, with Zar’s help, finally kills him. Like in the Tarzan stories, the creatures of the jungle all have names. Ka-Zar has a rudimentary education and talks accordingly. This story was serialised in comic form in Marvel Comics #1 (October 1939) and Marvel Mystery Comics #2–5 (December 1939 to March 1940). The Ka-Zar character continued with new stories until MMC #27 (January 1942). Ray Gill and Bob Oksner did stories and artwork. Ka-Zar also appeared in Human Torch #5 (Fall 1941) David Rand The first Ka-Zar, David Rand, was a typical "jungle lord" in the Tarzan vein, also known as Ka-Zar the Great, who first appeared in the pulp magazine Ka-Zar #1 (October 1936)1 from Manvis Publishing, one of many magazine companies owned by Martin Goodman. Writer-artist Ben Thompson adapted the pulp story "King of Fang and Claw" by Bob Byrd for Goodman's first comic book, Marvel Comics #1 (October 1939). In the 2000s (decade), the David Rand Ka-Zar was featured in the All New Official Handbook to the Marvel Universe A-Z. Fictional character biography Born in South Africa in 1918, three-year-old David Rand accompanied his British parents John and Constance on a flight to Cairo to visit his grandfather. Unfortunately, their plane crashed in the jungles of Congo. Constance died in the crash and John was driven mad. Living in the jungle with his father, isolated from the local tribes, David grew under the jungle’s hardships into an unusually powerful youth and developed strong empathy with wildlife, notably rescuing Zar the Lion from quicksand. When a criminal named Paul de Kraft discovered emeralds in Congo, John died opposing him only for Zar to scare Paul de Kraft off. With the support of Zar, David became the jungle's leading warrior within a few years challenging different animals like Bardak the Ape and N'Jaga the Leopard. Considered to be "god-like" by the natives, David Rand ended up named Ka-Zar (native for "Brother of Zar"). When Paul de Kraft returned to seize the emerald deposits, Ka-Zar killed him thus avenging his father. With the help of the local animals, Ka-Zar established himself as the guardian of the jungle which involved meting out harsh retribution to any intruder seeking to exploit his resources-but he frequently aided more benign explorers, such as when he protected Prof. Rice and his daughter Mara from the criminal pilot "Red" Skelton, rescued Rita Grey from the Wabi tribe, and helped two Scotland Yard detectives capture murderer London Jack. When Zar the Lion was captured by the vicious Rajah Sarput and a big game hunter named Bradley, Ka-Zar stowed away on a ship when Zar was shipped to the United States. Though he managed to free Zar, Ka-Zar ended up arrested when he tried to free the zoo animals. Fortunately, Ruth Wilson (another woman whom Ka-Zar had rescued during an African expedition), vouched for him. Ka-Zar and Zar were granted passage back to Africa on a British ship. Surviving attacks by entrenched Nazi forces, Ka-Zar and Zar confronted Sarput who was ultimately slain by their ally Trajah the Elephant. Soon after, Ka-Zar learned he had inherited his father’s Transval diamond mines. After preventing his inheritance’s theft by John Rand’s law partner Alec Wright, Ka-Zar donated the wealth to war relief in England. While on an expedition to the mysterious Black River Region, Ka-Zar encountered giants and subterranean lizard people. Ka-Zar managed to befriend a giant named Bogat. Ka-Zar later waged a series of campaigns against the Axis forces in Ethiopia, Somaliland, and anywhere else in Africa where the Axis forces were camped, killing them with their own weapons with help from the French and British forces. Following one such encounter, Ka-Zar was restored to health by an aged witch doctor, who gave him a brew used centuries before to grant his tribe superhuman strength. Ka-Zar’s exploits earned him such fame that he was invited to attend a meeting of superhuman champions in the mid-1940s. Last time anyone heard from Ka-Zar, he protected his region’s wildlife when Africa was threatened by monstrous tidal waves from Atlantean warfare. The rest of Ka-Zar's life after that was left unchronicled. In the 1960s, Marvel Comics reintroduced a Ka-Zar character (named Lord Kevin Plunder) into their universe of superhero characters, who still appears in their comics today occasionally. Contents of Ka-Zar pulps Ka-Zar v1 #1, October 1936 "King of Fang and Claw" by Bob Byrd………6 (Start of story page) "Jungle War" by Anatole Feldman……………82 "Fatal Treasure" by Beech Allen………………94 "Pearl Magic" by James Hall…………………105 "Snake Wisdom" by T.K. Hawley………………114 Ka-Zar v1 #2, January 1937 "Roar of the Jungle" by Bob Byrd………………8 "Rifled Gold" by Anatole Feldman……………88 "Law of the Legion" by Beech Allen………98 "Traitor Blood" by Rex Evans…………………107 Ka-Zar v1 #3, June 1937 "The Lost Empire" by Bob Byrd………………8 "Assassin’s Blood" by W.M.F. Bayliss…………79 "Hades’ Reef" by Norman A. Daniels……………88 "White Devils" by R.A. Emberg…………96 Reprints Altus Press did a single volume reprint of all the Ka-Zar pulp stories as King of Fang and Claw.missing